SFA to present student-directed 'Tone Clusters'

The Stephen F. Austin State University School of Theatre will present a student-directed production of "Tone Clusters" at 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 16, and at 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 17. All performances will be in the Downstage Theatre on the first floor of the Griffith Fine Arts Building, 2222 Alumni Dr.

Joyce Carol Oates' one act play takes a closer look at the average TV-watching married couple, but with a twist, explained Austin junior Holly Adair, the play's director.

It is the television that watches the couple. And when a disembodied voice interviews the couple, more is revealed than what meets the eye. The play is recommended for mature audiences. More

Guest pianist to present recital at SFA

The Stephen F. Austin State University College of Fine Arts and School of Music will present Ross E. Smith in a guest piano recital at 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 16, in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.

Smith, who is an associate professor of piano at the Hurley School of Music of Centenary College of Louisiana, will perform "Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111" by Ludwig van Beethoven and "Sonata No. 1 in D minor, Op. 28" by Sergei Rachmaninoff. He will also present two works by Frédéric Chopin-"Scherzo No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 31" and "Berceuse, Op. 57." More

SFA to present Teaching Excellence Awards

Six Stephen F. Austin State University faculty members will be honored for their teaching abilities at the university's annual Teaching Excellence Convocation at 4 p.m. Thursday, April 15, in Regent's Suites A and B of the Baker Pattillo Student Center.

The Teaching Excellence Awards were established in 1994 to honor outstanding classroom teachers at SFA.

Each of the university's six colleges selects a member of its faculty to receive the award based on knowledge of subject matter, quality of lectures and assignments, enthusiasm for teaching, interest in and availability to students, commitment to continuous improvement, and contribution to the quality of teaching within SFA through assistance and encouragement of other faculty. More

News and Announcements

NEW! Fred J. Allen, music, has recently spent time in the public schools serving as a consultant for bands preparing for U.I.L. Spring contests. He worked with 29 bands in Keller, Huntsville, Galena Park, Frisco, Katy, Mansfield and several East Texas schools.

The Teaching Excellence Center and the Division of University Affairs present, "Getting the Most out of the Week of Reflection" at 3 p.m. Wednesday, April 14, in the Tiered Meeting Room (BPSC 2.201) located in the Student Center. Adam Peck, Dean of Student Affairs, will lead a discussion on the purpose of the week and what faculty can do to encourage critical reflection in the classroom. The "Week of Reflection" event (April 26-30) is intended to encourage students to pause and reflect upon everything that they have learned both inside and outside of the classroom this year, and how it has changed them. Read more about this event.

NEW! Larry D. Thomas, 2008 Texas Poet Laureate, will be the honored guest at the official opening of the Larry D. Thomas Archives from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 15, at the East Texas Research Center (ETRC), located in Steen Library. Later that day, Thomas will conduct a book reading and signing from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Cole Art Center in downtown Nacogdoches. The events are sponsored by the East Texas Research Center and the Department of English.

It’s not too late to sign up as a faculty/staff mentor for the SFA Volunteer Program’s The BIG Event! Students will be heading out into the community on Friday, April 23, to complete service projects as a way to say “thank you!” to folks for all their support of SFA students. Mentors will be working alongside students and helping to facilitate discussion and conversation about the experience. No prior experience is needed! Mentor meetings are 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 15, and noon to 1 p.m. Friday, April 16, in BPSC 2.201. For more information, please contact Jamie Bouldin at jfbouldin@sfasu.edu or (936) 468-1088.

The Educational Leadership Doctoral Program in the Department of Secondary Education and Educational Leadership at SFA is a 66-credit-hour doctoral program that provides an opportunity for an emphasis in Higher Education Administration. The application deadline is Thursday, April 15, for classes that begin this June. Read more about this program and download applications and fliers.

It’s time for Brown Bag Blast 2010! Please join us for lunch, brown bag that is, from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, April 16, in the Wyatt Room of Steen Library. Take an opportunity to break away from your regular lunch routine and share in a lively discussion about...What’s Cool – Or Not – In Your Blackboard Course? Oh--dessert is on us, and you may be the lucky winner of some of our fabulous door prizes, too!

The Project Unity Step Show will be from 7 to 10 p.m. Friday, April 16, in the William R. Johnson Coliseum. The Project Unity Step Show is an event produced by students to celebrate student unity on the campus of SFA. General Admission is $5 with reserved seating at $7. Reserved seats are limited, so try to get them before they are gone. Tickets are on sale at the Info Desk on the first floor of the Student Center.

The Third Annual Earth Day outdoor festival will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, April 17, at the SFA Mast Arboretum and intramural parking lot. Earth Day is a national event to instill a sense of environmental stewardship. There will be information booths, presenters, organized activities for kids and all ages, food, music and more. The SFA Garden Gala Plant Sale will also be happening simultaneously. Join us in celebrating the earth and learn some great ways to live simply and sustainably.

NEW! Concerned about someone? Learn to intervene when a friend or loved one might be thinking of suicide. The Counseling Center is providing QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) training for faculty, staff and students. The next training session is scheduled from 3 to 5 p.m. Monday, April 19, in the Rusk Building, Room 333. For more information, please call (936) 468-2401.

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Schools of Music and Theatre present “Susannah,” an American opera by Carlisle Floyd

7:30 p.m. in W.M. Turner Auditorium.

Based on the tale of Susannah and the Elders, the plot focuses on an innocent 19-year-old girl who is targeted as a sinner in a small Tennessee mountain town in the 1950s. The opera was named the Best New Opera in 1956 by the New York Music Critics Circle and premiered at the Metropolitan Opera in 1999 with Renée Fleming singing the title role.

Tickets are $18 for adults, $12 for seniors, $9 for SFA faculty and staff, and $6 for students.

Friday, April 16Ross Smith, guest pianist, will give a recital at 7:30 p.m. in Cole Concert Hall, Wright Music Building. An associate professor of piano at the Hurley School of Music of Centenary College of Louisiana, Smith will perform “Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111” by Ludwig van Beethoven and “Sonata No. 1 in D minor, Op. 28” by Sergei Rachmaninoff. He will also present two works by Frédéric Chopin—“Scherzo No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 31” and “Berceuse, Op. 57.”Admission is free.

Ongoing (Week of April 12-April 16)Samuel Rothbort now on display in Griffith Gallery, Room 208 of the Griffith Fine Arts Building. The exhibition of paintings and sculptures by the renowned artist marks the first time SFA has displayed the collection of Rothbort’s works recently acquired for its permanent collection, including pieces which have never before been exhibited publicly. The show will run through Saturday, April 17. Regular gallery hours are 12:30 to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. (936) 468-1131.

TEXAS NATIONAL 2010 and Judy Pfaff: Drawings and Printsnow display at The Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House, 329 E. Main St. Created by the SFA School of Art, "Texas National" is celebrating its 16th year on the national scene. The competition is open to all artists living and working in the United States. This year, juror Judy Pfaff chose 191 pieces by 162 artists. Both shows run through Saturday, May 22. Regular gallery hours are 12:30 to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. (936) 468-1131.

Consumed: Fast Food in the USnow on display at The Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House, 329 E. Main St. From the eating contests to the mascots designed to appeal to young children, Susana Raab’s 20 photographs capture the influence of the fast food franchise super powers and the saturation of their marketing strategies on everyday American life. The show will run through Saturday, May 15. Regular gallery hours are 12:30 to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.

When people are free to pursue goals unfettered by presumed limitations

George Bernard Dantzig recounts his 1939 feat in an interview for the "College Mathematics Journal," 1986.

"During my first year at Berkeley, I arrived late one day at one of [Jerzy] Neyman's classes. On the blackboard there were two problems that I assumed had been assigned for homework. I copied them down.

"A few days later I apologized to Neyman for taking so long to do the homework — the problems seemed to be a little harder than usual. I asked him if he still wanted it. He told me to throw it on his desk. I did so reluctantly because his desk was covered with such a heap of papers that I feared my homework would be lost there forever.

"About six weeks later, one Sunday morning about eight o'clock, [my wife] Anne and I were awakened by someone banging on our front door. It was Neyman. He rushed in with papers in hand, all excited: 'I've just written an introduction to one of your papers. Read it so I can send it out right away for publication.'

"For a minute I had no idea what he was talking about. To make a long story short, the problems on the blackboard that I had solved thinking they were homework were in fact two famous unsolved problems in statistics. That was the first inkling I had that there was anything special about them.

"A year later, when I began to worry about a thesis topic, Neyman just shrugged and told me to wrap the two problems in a binder and he would accept them as my thesis."

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